Fate Has Many Faces
by AnaxibiaClark
Summary: What if anomalies never existed? No ARC. No Team. No rampaging Dinosaurs. But fate has many faces. In a world where anomalies never threw them together; will Connor and Abby be drawn to each other in the course of their everyday lives?
1. First Encounter

**I've been bitten by the romance bug and this is what it gave me. Read and enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I own none of the characters in Primeval they all belong to Impossible Pictures.**

It was late afternoon and Connor Temple sat at a table in the back of a quaint little café he'd come to frequent. He drained his cup of Cappuccino as he typed away on his laptop.

For months he's been reworking the dissertation that he had presented to his Paleontology Professor, Nick Cutter. The professor had _not_ been pleased with Connor's original proposal, or his lack of lecture attendance. He was offered an ultimatum: either rewrite his thesis and attend the rest of the classes or receive a failing grade. Connor had chosen, quite wisely in his own humble opinion, to rewrite his paper; although, he wasn't too thrilled with the idea of attending the lectures.

He had developed a loose routine, spending most of his mornings researching various prehistoric creatures (from his very own formulated database non-the-less) and the evolutionary timeline at the local library, before heading to the University to attend the lectures. Usually, he found himself at the café during the late afternoon and into the early evening. Connor noticed that if he stayed away from the flat that he shared with Tom and Duncan, he achieved more and was coming closer to finishing his new dissertation. He was a little miffed at the fact that he kept missing out on their sci-fi movie nights, and had promised them they'd spend the summer catching up. Those plans all ended once he met _her_.

* * *

Connor heard a light tap on the table, glancing to his left he saw a paper cup slowly glide its way towards him.

"Um," he murmured as he studied the small, distinctly feminine, hand that was wrapped around the cup, noting the black nail polish.

"Thought you could use a refill," the woman's soft voice reached his ears.

His eyes continued to travel up the supple form of her arm briefly tracing the curve of her neck before reaching her pale, blue eyes. Connor swallowed hard.

"Uh, thanks," he said, a slight flutter to his voice.

"You're welcome," her eyes, accented with black eyeliner, crinkled when she smiled. "I've, uh, seen you working here almost every day and figured you could use another cup."

Connor took a sip, his eyes alternating between her and the cup he held.

"Wow that's good," he said, propping his elbows on the table. "How'd you know m'favorite? You're not some sort of weird stalker-girl are you?" He laughed awkwardly at his own joke.

"Oh god, do I give off that vibe?" Her laugh was equally as awkward, "no, I just, you know, knew you were a regular, and asked them to make you another cup."

There was a long moment that passed between the two of them as they both smiled at each other, at a loss for what to say next. The woman suddenly stuck out her hand.

"I'm…"

"Abby!" Voices called from the entrance of the café. "We're going to be late."

Abby winced, mentally cursing at her ill-timed friends.

"Abby, I'm Abby. Well, obviously." She called across the café, "I'll be right over!" She turned back to Connor, "sorry, my friends are here." She paused for a few seconds, fiddling with her shirt hem as he absentmindedly twiddled his coffee cup.

Before the silence could grow any longer, Abby said, "look, um, maybe we'll run into each other tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah?" Connor said.

"Yeah," she replied, smiling as she started to head towards the door. "And if we don't, you can call me."

A crooked, dopey grin was spreading across Connor's face as she stepped out the door. His brain was just starting to come back online and ask several important questions. Questions such as: _What just happened_, and _did she really flirt with me_, and _really cute wasn't she? _But the one that was shoving its way front and center with the panic of urgency asked: _What was her phone number?_

* * *

Abby and her friends walked into the studio where their yoga classes were held. The shorter of her companions, Amy, nudged her with an elbow.

"So, Abby, just who was that handsome bloke back there?"

"Oh," Abby shrugged, "he's just one of the regulars at the café."

"Ah, and you were…"

"Trying to flirt with him, right?" Her other friend, Emily, butted in.

"No," Abby tried to hold a straight face as they watched her, grinning. After a moment she relented, smiling herself, "yes, fine – I was trying to flirt with him." She stopped suddenly as a look of horror crossed her face, "oh god. I told him to call me."

"And?" Amy asked.

"And I never _gave_ him my number," Abby replied, thumping the heel of her palm against her forehead.

"Oooh, ouch."

"He probably thinks I'm some sort of idiot," She groaned. "Or worse, that I'm one of those girls who get a jolly out of leaving some poor boy lost and confused."

"Aw, it's okay," Emily laughed. "Always good to leave a man confused," she winked, "better chance of them wanting to get in your knickers."

"Emily!" Abby yelled as they entered the locker room.

"What?" Emily said, hands in the air. "All I'm doing is stating a fact."

"From personal experience?" Abby asked as she unzipped her bag, pulling out her sweats.

"No, but my cousin Natalie says it's what works best for a quick shag."

Amy rolled her eyes as she cinched her workout pants up over her hips. "Come _on_ Emily, I doubt she wants to shag him. Well," she glanced at Abby, "not until after the first date, right?"

"What is it with you two and my sex life?" Abby grumbled looking annoyed.

Amy shrugged in response. "We're just concerned is all."

"Yeah," Emily said, choosing her words carefully, "ever since the zoo made those budget cuts and you got kicked from the reptile exhibit. You've, well, you really haven't been yourself, 'specially since you took on that second job."

Abby sighed, unhooking her straps as she reached for a sports bra. "I know, but how else am I going to pay rent on the flat."

"You could always look for a flatmate. Divvy up the rent?" Emily suggested, lacing up her trainers.

"Already thought about that," Abby replied. "I'm just not ready to share my place with a complete stranger."

Amy shrugged, "suit yourself, but you should look more into the idea of a roomy. Never know when you may need the extra income. 'Sides," she gestured to Emily, "It worked out for us."

"Yup," Emily said in a chipper voice. "Okay ladies, I think we've gone on long enough about Abby, now let's get to the stretching." She winked at them, "I believe I have a date with a gorgeous yoga instructor." Grinning, she practically bounced out the locker room door.

Abby rolled her eyes as Amy amended herself.

"Mostly it works."

Her mind still working on the idea of finding a flatmate, Abby followed her friends out of the locker room.

**I've been fighting with writers block on Something Wicked and I'm hoping this story will jump start things again. Please leave me some feedback and let me know what you thought of the story. If possible chapter two may get thrown into the mix. Thank you all for reading.**


	2. Talk Among Friends

**I know it's been a long time since I last posted a chapter, I'm so sorry. This semester has been hell and that's why you guys haven't heard from me in a while. I've only been able to work on chapter two of Fate so maybe some point next month or sooner, a third chapter will pop up. Thanks for being so patient with me and thank you for leaving such great reviews for chapter one. Have fun and enjoy.**

Connor raised his arms above his head, letting the tension ease from his shoulders as he stretched.

_Finally completed my dissertation_, he thought, watching the blinking icon on his screen.

"Be nice if I could get distracted by beautiful women more often," he grinned to himself as he saved his final work, admiring his accomplishments.

Slumping into the chair, Connor closed his eyes and could just make out the silhouette of a certain petite form in his vision. He imagined wrapping his arms around the warm, supple figure, pulling it flush against his chest.

_What I wouldn't give to see her again._

* * *

Abby stretched her arms over her head, enjoying the feeling of a good post-yoga stretch. Opening the door to her mini, she realized Amy had been talking to her.

"Hmm? Sorry Amy, I was off in my own world."

Amy rolled her eyes as she let Emily wiggle her way into the back. "I was asking what you were going to do."

"About what?" Abby replied.

"About that bloke," Amy grinned, "you know, the one you left mystified back at the café."

"I _honestly_ don't know." Abby mused, keying the ignition.

"Well, you could try to talk to him again."

"Or, just throw yourself at him." Emily grinned from the back seat. "It's always worked for me."

"Yeah, until you scare the poor bloke away." Amy said with a smile.

"Hey!" Emily snapped, "that only happened once. And only after a few weeks." She slumped back in her seat, arms folded across her chest.

"If you say so." Amy snickered, shaking her head.

Abby smiled, pulling the car out into traffic, she thought about what Amy had said. She wondered what his first impression was of her, the idea made her stomach begin to flip-flop. A kind of quiet fell over the car as they drove back to Abby's flat; Amy had her mp3 player hooked up, and Emily was still fuming in the back seat. Stopping for a traffic light, Abby cleared her throat, breaking the silence.

"I guess I could head over to the café tomorrow after I finish my shift at the zoo."

Amy popped out an earbud, "are you sure he's going to be there once you're out of work?"

"No, not exactly," Abby said glancing over at Amy. "But if he's there same time as he was today, then I might have a chance to speak with him again."

"What if he's not there?"

Abby drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, "then maybe it wasn't meant to be."

The light turned green as Amy raised an eyebrow. "Never took you as the type to believe in fate."

"I dunno, it's just…" Abby paused collecting her thoughts as she turned down the intersection. "There's something about him."

"Hmm," Amy mused, studying Abby's face. "So what is this 'something'?"

"It's hard to explain," Abby grew silent, piloting the car through traffic.

Amy fiddled with the touch wheel on her player for a moment before turning back to Abby. "What exactly do you know about him?"

"Not much," Abby said mulling over what she knew. "He's some sort of tech-genius who goes to a university, and – bit of a geek."

"And, how do you know all of this?" Emily piped up.

"I may have…'glanced' at his laptop while he was working," Abby said, an impish grin on her face.

Emily laughed, "no _way_."

"You little spy," Amy teased.

Abby couldn't help but giggle herself. "It's actually quite easy. You can look over his shoulder as he's typing away and he'll never even notice."

"Wait," Emily poked Abby's shoulder, "I thought you worked out back, you know, baking and such."

"I pull double duty clearing the tables too," Abby said, looking in her rearview mirror. "If I did just the baking I'd only work a few hours a day, and I need the money."

"Don't we all," Amy sighed.

"Hang on then," Emily said, "he's not one of those guys who looks up porn in public, is he?"

"Oh god no," Abby said, making a face. "I mean… oh, that's just too gross. Ugh, I don't even want to think about it."

Emily grinned at her friends' discomfort. "That's probably because he saves it for when he's alone, with a girly magazine."

She cackled as her comment was greeted with groans of annoyance. Amy shifted in her seat as she reached back, trying to poke Emily.

"All right. All right," Emily laughed as she fended off her flatmate. "Seriously," she said as Amy faced the front again, "what's he working on?"

Abby shrugged, "I think all he's doing is completing assignments for some course he's taking."

"Ah. Well, that's good to hear."

"You sound disappointed." Amy said craning her neck over a shoulder.

"No," Emily said, "well kind of. I was hoping it would be something a bit more mysterious, or action packed. Like, what if he was some sort of agent working for the civil service?"

Amy rolled her eyes, "You watch too many daytime dramas." She looked at Abby, "speaking of mysterious 'somethings' again."

"What?" Abby said quickly glancing over at Amy's smiling face. "What?"

"Never thought you'd have an interest in a potential _geek_."

* * *

Duncan looked up from his work as Connor made his way into the flat.

"Hey Connor."

"Hey Duncan. Hey Tom."

"Ah," Tom said from his spot in front of the gaming system. "The prodigal student has returned."

"Laugh all you want boys, because I," Connor threw his arms wide, "have finished my dissertation." He gave a mock bow.

"Finally," Duncan said.

Connor looked genuinely hurt. "What do you mean 'finally'?"

"What he means, Con," Tom mashed buttons as he spoke. "Is that if you missed another movie night we were going to report you to the Missing Persons Bureau."

"Or check to see if this 'professor' of yours had been drugging you without your knowing." Duncan piped up. "I read somewhere that a teacher was doing that, you know. Pumping experimental drugs into the classroom so that the students would work harder, yeah?"

"Oh yeah," Tom said, "I read that. Load of hogwash it was."

"Nuh-uh. I checked my sources. All facts and what not."

Tom rolled his eyes, "it was an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It's the one where Xander has to infiltrate the swim team."

"Gentlemen, gentlemen," Connor held up his hands for peace. "There is far more important news. I, Connor Temple, have met a girl." He grinned for a moment and then thought about it. "Well, not really met, more like she brought me coffee."

"So she was a waitress?" Duncan asked, puzzled.

"That's the thing, she wasn't."

"You expect us to believe that some girl willingly brought you coffee because she was interested in you?" Tom said, eyes still on the television screen.

"Mm-hm, yup. That's pretty much it." Connor nodded.

Tom glanced up at Duncan who shook his head. "Yeah," Tom said, "we're not buyin' it."

"But it's the truth."

"Sure it is Connor," Duncan said, turning back to his work.

"And the penalty for such a lie," Tom said pausing his game. "Is that you have to buy pizza for the entire month."

Connor made a face, "you guys'll be sorry when I prove you wrong." Connor gestured at both of them, as he left the room. "Just you wait."

"Yeah Con, you keep that up and we'll make you watch Howard the Duck again." Tom called after him.

Duncan chuckled for a moment before a look of concern grew on his face. "You don't suppose he could be tellin' the truth, do you?" He whispered conspiratorially.

"Nah man," Tom whispered back.

"Yeah," Duncan nodded. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Besides, if he is telling the truth," Tom un-paused his game, "it will probably end up like his fling with Caroline."

**Yes, I'm horrible for bringing Caroline into this story early, but you will find out the reason behind her appearance soon. Can't wait to read your reviews/comments and you'll be seeing chapter three sometime in the future. Thanks again! :D**


	3. Cupid's Snare

**Done with finals and everything else that deals with college work, so here's Chapter 3 to celebrate the end of a semester. I hope you all enjoy the read.**

**Disclaimer: I own none of the characters in Primeval they all belong to Impossible Pictures.**

_It had been a couple of weeks since Connor had completed his dissertation and he still hadn't made it back to the café. First he had been caught up with presenting his dissertation, then his part-time job needed him for some extra work, and lastly his finals had rolled around._

_Despite all these distractions plaguing him, Connor had really never forgotten about the girl from the coffee shop; the one who had needed to run off before they could fully acquaint themselves. He had been thinking about her almost every day since then, and wondering if she might have come back when he hadn't been there. He would mentally kick himself any time he thought about how he had missed his chance._

* * *

Connor thumbed through the cash in his wallet as he walked into the Bantos DVD Store, making sure he still had enough for a movie. It was his night to pick the movie and, since he never had the chance to prove Tom and Duncan wrong, he was still paying for the pizzas.

Browsing through the rows of movies left Connor feeling less than enthusiastic. It was one of those times when he was unsure if he wanted to watch fantasy, sci-fi or horror and nothing he came across seemed to jump out at him. Plastic cases clacked against one another as his fingers moved over them. He stopped at a few titles, still undecided he reached in and plucked one out at random.

"Texas Chainsaw Massacre?" Connor heard a voice say from his immediate left.

Connor looked over to see a familiar pair of bright blue eyes glancing up at him.

"Uh, hi!" Connor said with a bewildered smile on his face.

"Hi," Abby replied with her own nervous grin.

Connor saw she was balancing ever so slightly on her tiptoes in order to see the movie he held. As he watched, she settled slowly back onto the soles of her feet until she became flat footed again. It was such a slow and graceful motion that he felt the air around them become slightly warmer.

Abby pushed a few strands of hair back behind her ear, "I saw you browsing through the videos when I walked by, so I decided to stop in and say hello."

"Hello," Connor said again with a nervous laugh.

Before the moment of silence could stretch any further, Abby spoke up again. "I never understood the whole slasher thing."

"What?" Connor glanced down at the case in his hand like he had never seen it in his life. "Oh! Right! This thing. Well I was just, you know, browsing."

Abby nodded feeling almost as lost as he was.

"Really I just picked it up at random," Connor continued. "Just, reached in and grabbed it," he said, miming his actions.

"Oh yeah," Abby said, "I've done that _loads_ of times too. Like, uhm," she turned to the rack of movies beside them. Squeezing her eyes shut she reached out in front of her and plucked one out.

Connor raised his eyebrows, "Baked Bean Bombshells Volume 12."

"Of course it doesn't always work," Abby said, quickly replacing the case on the shelf. "So," she turned to face him, "how are you doing?"

"I'm doing fine," Connor replied. "Just, you know, never thought I might bump into you again."

Abby blushed. "Well, you never gave me your name, which made looking up your number rather difficult," she said with a smile. "Then again, we were so rudely interrupted."

_Right_, Connor thought to himself.

"M'name's Connor… Temple. Connor Temple, in that order," he took a breath, trying to calm his nerves. "And before we get off topic, you forgot to give me your number, also."

"You got me there," Abby said with a slight giggle.

"Yeah," Connor said, "how about that?"

Another moment of silence ballooned up between them as they found themselves at a loss for what to say next. Abby started to lightly bite her lower lip out of nervousness while Connor found himself fiddling with the edge of the DVD case. They might have stayed like that longer if the store manager hadn't cleared his throat and spoken up.

"Are you two love birds buying a movie; or are you gonna make googly eyes at one another all day?"

"No- no sir," Connor said, suddenly aware of where they stood. "We are…" he turned back to the shelves, "buying a movie, _yes_, that is what we are doing." Quickly fumbling through the selections as he spoke, Connor suddenly made a sound of discovery and grabbed a movie from the shelf.

Glancing at Abby, there was a slight pleading sound in his voice, like a man desperate not to pop his soap bubble of a dream. "Just hang on for a moment," he said, making a quick 'stay put' gesture to Abby, before he dashed over to the counter with the DVD in hand.

Connor heard a giggle from behind him, and his hand shook a little as he placed the DVD and some money on the counter. He was aware that he could feel his heart begin to pound even harder.

"Do you want a bag?" The manager asked.

"Ah, no mate. That's fine," Connor said, grabbing the DVD. "Cheers."

"Cheers," the manager replied. Tilting his head in Abby's direction, he added, "good luck."

Connor glanced over his shoulder and saw that Abby was still waiting for him in the exact spot she had been before. His smile grew bigger when she looked him in the eyes.

"Yeah," he said, turning back to the manager, "thanks."

DVD in hand, Connor made his way back to Abby.

"So what movie did _we_ buy?" She asked with more than a hint of humor in her eyes.

Beaming, Connor held up his prize, "Ed Wood's 'Plan 9 from Outer Space.' Only the best of the entire collection."

Abby cocked her head with a quizzical look on her face, "I don't think I've ever heard of him."

"Oh you'll love him," Connor assured her as they made their way out the door. "This one's got aliens and the walking dead and…" He saw her expression and quickly changed tactics, "It also has a wonderful romance for the ladies."

"Alright," Abby said slowly. "But," her voice took on a more innocent tone, "don't you think inviting me back to your place for a movie is a bit much for a first date?"

Connor felt the air rush out of his lungs. "Date? You-you consider this a date?"

"Well," Abby mulled the question over as she continued to walk. "Not a real date, not really."

"Oh," Connor said, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice.

"In order for it to be official," she stopped abruptly, turning on her heels to face him, "you'd have to ask me out somewhere. And since it is around lunchtime…" She raised her eyebrows at Connor to see if he'd taken the hint.

He smiled down at her, "so, would you like to join me for lunch?"

**More chapters to come, and it shouldn't take me months just to post one.**

******Also, I enjoy reading all the comments and reviews that my fellow readers and writers post for this story so please keep them coming and let me know what you think. Thanks for bringing happiness to my romance muse.**


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